LAUSANNE, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) (NYSE: PM) today announced the appointment of Jorge Insuasty to the position of Chief Life Sciences Officer, effective Jan. 15, 2021. Mr. Insuasty will report to the company’s CEO, André Calantzopoulos.
“Jorge’s wealth of experience across both the pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare industries makes him the ideal candidate to succeed John O’Mullane, who is retiring,” said Calantzopoulos. “Jorge is a transformational leader in science and medicine and excels in driving product portfolio development through to market success. Science and a consumer-focused product portfolio are the cornerstones of our ambition to replace cigarettes with products that are a better choice than continued smoking. Jorge’s impressive track record will help ensure we reach our goals and take full advantage of adjacent revenue-generating opportunities.”
Mr. Insuasty joins PMI from Sanofi S.A., where most recently he was the Global Franchise Head of Immunology, Oncology, and Neurology for Sanofi Genzyme. During his nine-year tenure at Sanofi he led the company’s product pipeline strategy, from candidate selection through the development and regulatory review processes, with a dozen novel drugs approved. He orchestrated significant transformational change within the R&D and commercial functions to substantially increase speed and efficiency, fostered external collaboration and innovation, and was highly engaged with the investor community. Overall, he played a pivotal role in the turnaround of Sanofi’s R&D efforts.
Prior to Sanofi, Mr. Insuasty spent eight years at Novartis International AG as Global Head of Development, Neuroscience, and Ophthalmology. Before that, he was VP, Research and Development, Consumer Medicines at Bristol Myers Squibb. Mr. Insuasty holds an MD in cardiology from the University of Paris.
“I am very excited to join PMI,” said Insuasty. “The company’s transformation, and smoke-free vision represent a tremendous public health opportunity and a business challenge, both of which I will be thrilled to contribute toward. And I also look forward to developing adjacent future growth drivers.”
This appointment follows the recent announcement that John O’Mullane, PMI’s current Chief Life Sciences Officer, will retire.
“We thank John for the enormous contributions he has made these last two years, driving innovation and rigor into our life sciences function, and we wish him well in his retirement,” added Calantzopoulos.
Philip Morris International: Delivering a Smoke-Free Future
Philip Morris International (PMI) is leading a transformation in the tobacco industry to create a smoke-free future and ultimately replace cigarettes with smoke-free products to the benefit of adults who would otherwise continue to smoke, society, the company, and its shareholders. PMI is a leading international tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes, as well as smoke-free products and associated electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing products in markets outside the U.S. In addition, PMI ships a version of its IQOS Platform 1 device and its consumables to Altria Group, Inc. for sale under license in the U.S., where the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized their marketing as a modified risk tobacco product (MRTP), finding that an exposure modification order for these products is appropriate to promote the public health. PMI is building a future on a new category of smoke-free products that, while not risk-free, are a much better choice than continuing to smoke. Through multidisciplinary capabilities in product development, state-of-the-art facilities, and scientific substantiation, PMI aims to ensure that its smoke-free products meet adult consumer preferences and rigorous regulatory requirements. PMI’s smoke-free product portfolio includes heat-not-burn and nicotine-containing vapor products. As of Sept. 30, 2020, PMI estimates that approximately 11.7 million adult smokers around the world have already stopped smoking and switched to PMI’s heat-not-burn product, available for sale in 61 markets in key cities or nationwide under the IQOS brand. For more information, please visit www.pmi.com and www.pmiscience.com.
